Steel roof for railway box cars



May 22, 1928.

W. E. WILLIAMS I STEEL ROOF Fon'nAILwAi BOX ems Filed March 22', 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 22, 1928. 1,671,002

- w. E. WILLIAMS STEEL ROOF FOR RAILWAY BOX CARS Filed March 22, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 W. E. WILLIAMS STEEL ROOF FOR RAILWAY 50x {mils May 22,1928.

4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 22, 1926 W. E. WILLIAMS STEEL ROOF FOR RAILWAY BOX CARS m zz, 1928. 1,671,002

Filed March 22, 1926 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 35 Fig.

rid epole. l i

9 of Fig.

Patented May 22,1928.

PATENT? 0mm;

.wrnuax mums wmraxs, or wmn'nn, rumors;

srm noonror. namwax Box cans.

Application nee 1mm 22, lane. sci-m 10.90).

My roof'relates to that class of freight box car roof wherein I-beam carlines are used and roof covering sheets which are sufficiently stifl due" to their peculiar construction that no underlying sheeting is required under the roof sheet itself.

The object of my invention is to provide a roof including the carline construction which will have a minimum weight and a maximum strength and at the same time will stand weaves and twists of the car body itself without tearing the roof sheets. 'The further object of my invention is to provide a roof construction which may be built into 5 the car with the least possible expense. A

particularly valuable feature in this roof construction is the forms and shapes of the end of the carlines and roof sheets-to make secure closure at the ends of the roof sheets over the ends of the carlines.

Reference will be had to the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 1s a" plan of a roof sheet being one of the sections'of roof sheet whichextend from eave to cave of the car.

Fig. 2 is an edge elevation of the sheets shown in Fig. 1

Fig. 3 is a transverse section from eave to eave of the car through the central porroof tion of one of the roof sheets which would correspond to section 3-3 of .Fig. 1 as relates to the roof sheet itself.

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing a roofing joint over one carline.

5 is a plan on an enlarged scale of a portion of the roof at the eaves showing the termination of the carline.

6 is an enlarged. section on line 66 of Fig. 5. V

Fi 7 is a view corresponding to the left 10f 1g. 3 but on a larger scale than that shown in Fig. 3. a a

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal vertical section between two carlines along the region of the 9 is a para the view showing the shap of the end time of the carlines.

Fig. 10 is .a transverse elevation across the running board looking from .the left end Fig. 11 is a plan of a modified form of a roof sheet the modification relating to the ends of the channel edges-of the roof sheets.

1 Fig.1? is .11 elevation eta portion at the cave of the car showing the modified sheet as per Fig. 11.

The frame construction atthetop of the car is'compos'ed of any suitable sldeplates but the cross section of the sideplate here shown is indicated in Fig. 7 and is a special Z-bar construction having an outer vertical eave leg 2 and inclined horizontal flange 3 and vertical flan 4 and inclined roof fastemng flan e 5. owever, any suitable sideplate may used with my roof.

The cross or roof frame members of the car is composed of carlines of I-beam section having a top flange member 6, a web 7 and a lower flange 8. These I-beams are bent in the form of an arch as indicated by Fig.

3 to form the roof shedding incline as desired.

tapering down to a parallel portion 10, and

cut away entirely at the outer end whereat the vertical web 7 is sheared off in the curved line 11,-1eaving a portion of the lower flange 8 extending outward free of the web 7 and this portion is turned down into vertically arranged flange 12. v

The c'arline thus shaped at the ends is secured to the flange 5 of the sideplate by means of the rivets 13 passing through the holes 14 in the lower flange 8 of the I-beam'. This lower flange 8 of the I-beam is further secured to the vertical leg 4 ofthe sideplate through the medium of knee brace pieces having a web 15 secured by rivets 16 and by riveted-over portion 17 to the lower flange 8 of the I-beamand this knee brace piece is provided with bracing flanges 18 and-with the web portion 19 secured by rivets 20 to the vertical leg 4 of the Z-bar sideplate.

Thus, the I-beam carline is securely fastened to the sideplate. The purpose of shearin the ends of the I-beam carline, as shown y Fi 9, is to provide for a closure of the roof s eets over these portions of the I-beam without uiring any clips or cover plates of any to cover over the ends of the roof sheets and the ends of the carlines.

- corrugation or line while the other edge of the same sheet fits over the carlines and the edge of the other sheet, as bestunderstood from Fig. 8

wherein 21 shows the right edge of the central sheet shown in Fig. 8 and 22 shows the left end of the sheet. I

Thus, one edge of the roof sheet fits down on the carline itself while the other edge fits over the top of the roof sheet already on the carline. I call the shape of these edges of the roof sheet channels. Hence, one edge of the roof sheet is stamped up having a slightly wider channel than the other edge. The wide channel portion of the roof sheet isindicated by 24 and the narrow edge by 25 in Fig. 1. Immediately adjacent to this channelled edge of the roof sheet the body of the sheet curves down into the flat portions 26 and the middle portFonof the sheet is ressed upward into a large bulge 27. The channel portions 24 and 25 are narrowed down at their ends as indicated by 28 and 29 in Fig. 1 to cover over the narrow portions of the ends of the I-beam carlines as shown in Fig. 9. v

In the modified form of ,roof sheet as shown in Figs. 11 and 12 the ends 23 of the channel edges 24 and 25 of the roof sheet are not narrowed as in the other figures but extend full width down over the ends of the carlines thus leaving a clearance across the narrow portions 10 and 11 of the carlines.

In other respects the roof sheets are alike. The ends of the roof sheet are bent downward into downward projecting flanges 30, the middle portions of which are curved under as indicated by 31, see Fig. 7, turning under an edge of the flange 5 of the sideplate, while at each'edge or corner of the roof sheet the downward projectingfiange 30 extends straight downward and where these flanges overlap, as is indicated by Fig. 5 and where they cover over the downward projecting portion 12 of the lower flange of the I-beam carlines 8 they are riveted to each other andto this flange 12 by rivets 32 which rivets 32 pass through the holes 33 inthe flange 12 of the carline. The ends of the roof sheets are alsoheld down onto the sideplates by the turned under portions 31 which extend under theflange 5 of the sideplate. This turning under of this. portion 31 is done after the roof sheets are assemble of the carlines.

nflace on to ridgepole construction ma ny suitabl be used as desired and a wooden ridgepo e 34, as here shown, issecuredby-bolts 35 to the lower flange 8 of the 'I-beam carline. Any suitable running board saddle may be used with this construction and I have shown a saddle composed ofa flat plate 36 to which areriveted by rivets 38 brackets 37 having through the flanges of the Lbeam carline.

A packing piece of asphalt felt roofing41 is interposed between the le s 39 and the roof sheet on topof the car ines to insure against leakage of water in and around the head of the bolt 40 and further insurance against leakage is provided bv a lead washer 42 under the heads of the bolts 40. A run- 'ning board 43 is secured by bolts 44 to the plate 36.

Where purlins are desired to be used they may be secured in a similar manner to that of the ridgepole 34 and an suitable form of ridgepole or purlins may e used.

The bulge or corrugated portion 27 in conjunction with the valleys 26 on'each side of the bulge 27 together with the channelled edges 24 and 25 of the roof sheets furnish a very stifl sheet across the car which does not require any underlying-sheathing when using a relatively light weight metal.

The shape of the sheets across permit, as it were, a spring or twist of the roof sheet which will accommodate for any twist or winding of the car body that may occur in service.

In assembling the roof sheets on to the carlines the sheets are simply dropped, down lower legs 39 secured by bolts 40 passing consecutively along the length of the car, I

one edge of the sheet overlapping the edge struction of this kind.

The fastening down of the running board saddle hold the sheets down in the middle of the car and the rivets 32 at each end ofthe roof sheet hold the ends of the roof sheet down and the'rivets 32 are assisted in this by the turned under portions 31 of the lower flanges 30 of the roof sheets.

At each end of the car a special sheet is provided having a turned down flange that may be needed to fit over the end of the car dependin of course, on the character of the end that s used in the car structure.

Carlines cut away at the ends, as described, form as it were, rounded downwardly curved noses at the caves and I have shown the channelled edges of the ,roof sheets curved to fit curved ends due to the line as shown.

I have disclosed novel features in this ap-v plication which are also disclosed in my copendmg applications Ser. Nos. 86,817 and fla a cut away in a taper .formf'at the I end? with the web of the car as cut away cutaway of the top flange of the I-beam car 5 in a curved. downward form and with the lower flange of the I-beam cut away from the web of the I-beam and bent downward in a downward projecting flange and with the body of the I-beam having its web verti- Y cally arranged extendin across the car. i

2. In a roof of the 'c ass described, roof sheets extending from eave to cave of the car and having u turned edges turned over into channelled s apes and adapted to interlock and overlap each other, the said roof 3. In, a roof structure of the class described, I-beam carlines with their websfver tically arranged, roof sheets having channellededges overlapping each other and the carlines, a runnin 'board saddle secured to the-top of the roo sheets b means of bolts which extend down through the channelled edges of the roof sheets and secured against leakage by washers of soft material 1nterposfid between the parts that are clamped toet er.

g 4. In a roof structure of thb class described, roof sheets having channelled edges overlapping each other and overlapping the tops of the carlines and the said sheets extending across from eave to cave ofthe car in arched form and having a cross section in theform of a relatively deep valley on each side of the carline and a relatively deep summit in; the middle portion of the sheet and the said summit ta ring down to a flat surface where the roo sheets rest on the sideplates. i

5. In a structure of the class described,

carlines extending normally in a zone higher than-the sideplates and the body' of the said carlines curved downward at their ends over the sideplates, roof sheets having channelled edges overlapping the" tops of the carlines and having on each side of the carline a relatively deep valley corresponding to substantiall. the zone of the top, sur- 4 face of the sidep ates and thesaid sheets provided with a central upward projecting corrugation curved downwardly merging in a flat portion at the'sidepl ates-of' the car and the ends of the said roof sheets turned down into downward projecting flan es over the e'd es of the sideplatcsand "tie said channe led edges of the roof sheet likewise;

curved down over the curved ends of the carline and the said roof sheets-secured from upward displacement at the eaves of the car and at the running board saddles position at the summit of the roof. I

6. An I-beam carline having ea'chgend tion of the web and upper flan e and said flangebeing transverse y tapere by there- .moval of portions adjacent to said ends.

'I. An I-beam carline havinga t each and a downturned extension of the lower flange, the upper-flange and the web vterminating in downwardly curved by the removal of a oora downwa'igdly rounded nose, and the upper,

flange tapered from sa d nose.

..8. In a car roof structure, the combination with n I-beam carline having eachen'd downward y curved b 'severintg a (portion sal of the web -and upper ange an flange being tapered by severing end ortions, of

a plurality-of roof sheets each aving two lateral channels, one of whichfits over the to flange and tapered and curved ends of vsaid carline and the other of said channels being adapted to enclose a channel identical with said first channel."

J Si ed at Chicago, in the county of Cook WILLIAM ERASTUS 'WII ZLI AMS.

and tate of Illinois, this 19th dayot March, 

